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Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Big Fat Lougies

Yawwwwwwn!


Tonight I folded all the laundry that I've been forgetting about since the voting games started.


For some reason folding laundry gives me and undeniable urge to curl up into a little ball and fall asleep on top of all the warm towels.


Instead I scrunched up a big ole' plaid fleece blanket and snuggled up next to Lulu on the floor. In front of a roaring fireplace. And listened to my hub read a motivational book about some big wig basketball coach to my kids.


What were the main points again? If you fail to prepare you prepare to fail? Something like that. Isn't it cool when you can turn phrases inside out to make you go hmmmmm?


Don't mistake activity for accomplishment. Hmmmm Another deep one. I would add, don't mistake inactivity for unaccomplishment. And while were at it, don't mistake accomplishment for activity.


Sometimes I enjoy being active more than I enjoy being accomplished.


Maybe that's my problem.


So my son got a fortune cookie today at school which said, "You need to stop wishing and be more practical."


Are you freakin' kidding me? That's gotta be an ancient Mormon Chinese fortune cookie, right? I can just picture the Queen Bee of the hive writing propaganda fortunes in between baking bread and canning tomatoes, can't you?


SIGH!


Can I just say that I lub my dog so dang much. She's like my favorite pet on the face of this earth. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, she sticks her head and her paws up on my bed just to tell me she lubs me. I open my eyeballs and there she is, looking at me in the dark. After I give her head a pat she stretches back out on the floor beside the bed and gives a deep sigh.


We're blissfully happy together.


So my daughter comes home from Hawaii tomorrow. She's checking her baggage right now.


In case you didn't know, we used to live there before we moved here. It's been a year now so we scraped our frequent flyer miles together to send her back for five days. To celebrate her 16th birthday. And her best friend's 16th birthday. And to go through the Laie Temple open house. And the Haunted Lagoon.


But mostly we sent her back to get our tennis rackets restrung.


She calls me every day and we talk and talk and talk like school girls. I want to hear every little thing about every little thing--what everyone looks like and smells like and sounds like--what everyone says. Usually she's walking through places my feet have touched a million times--past our old town house, (WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!) or through BYU-H campus, (WAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!) or along the Iron Rod, which is what we called the street that leads from the Beach to the temple.


For some odd reason my eyeballs are always on the verge of spilling their guts when we talk. It's not that I'm jealous or regretful, or even sad. It's not that I'm unhappy with my new life as a home owner and dog owner and big screen t.v owner.


It's just that Laie was my life. For years and years and years and years. And years.


And now it's not.


I hate it when things are not.


I wonder what she'll feel when she comes back. I wonder if she will go into post-childhood-home-town-depression? Maybe I shouldn't have sent her. Maybe it's better to push things down down down and not look back.


But she's speaking pidgin and eating seaweed and spam. She's going to the beach and playing ping pong on her friends kitchen table. People are hugging her on the street and in Foodland and taking photos of her at church. They're giving her free t-shirts and shakas and new tennis rackets.

"They laugh at my jokes mom!" She told me. "They LAUGH at my jokes!"


And everywhere she goes she says people tell her that they're voting for me. She said one day she was walking down the street and someone she didn't even know came running out of her house shouting, "I hope your mom wins! I'm voting for her every day."


Allow me a moment to collect my swollen tear drops.


Allow me another moment.


May I have just one more?


Maybe I'll just finish this post tomorrow. I wanted to tell you that I finally found out who I am and where I come from. All because my brother spit into a cup and had his DNA tested.


All those years of teaching about identity construction and reconstruction and the answer was right there in a big fat lougie!


Better a lougie than a fortune cookie. That's what I always say.


(Actually I've never said that before, have I?)


Can't wait to see my daughter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



10 comments:

The Songer said...

Thanks... Im even more jealous of T now! And crying because im very happy that she got to go back!

In Hawaiian it's called Kalei'eha.. the feeling you get when your so happy you cry! Although the literal meaning of it is Wreath of Pain... Ironic huh?

The Crash Test Dummy said...

Wreath of pain???? OMGOSH that is the perfect word to describe those things that make you so happy you want to cry. Don't you think Johnny Cash should write a song about it?

BTW, the girl who came running out of the house was your best friend Nisi. She said she found my blog on your sidebar. We've been emailing now.

Small world, eh?

Melanie Jacobson said...

Here's my Crash/Hawaii story:

A few weeks ago I was standing in line with my husband waiting to catch the tram to Disneyland. There were three teenagers in front of us complaining about their dinner being to dry. Whatever it was was wrapped up in foil so I leaned over to get a peek. "That's musubi!" I said to my husband.

"It's what?"

"Musubi! I saw it on Crash's blog!"

So leaned over and asked the kids, "That's musubi, right?"

And three pairs of Asian eyes turned to stare at me and three Asian jaws dropped when they saw a pig-tailed white lady asking them the question.

And then they grinned. And I smiled back and said, "I recognized the Spam."

The End.

Martha said...

Bye Tatum, it was fun seeing you. But, you didn't say goodbye. I bet you were in a huge hurry so no worries. Glad you had fun. Next year about this time start applying to BYU Hawaii, K?

The Songer said...

I <3 <3 <3 Nisi! .... and miss her dearly!

Guess what i found.. Mariko is also having a voting thingy.. go vote for her.. She's making yummy food and makes it look too easy!

springrose said...

My Hubby is out of town this week, having all these experiences I am not having. Seeing new things, eating at fun places. While I am stuck here, getting no sleep since my 2 year old thinks he needs to wake me up every hour or so. And serving Mac and Cheese because what is the point in making a big meal for me and 5 kids who won't appreciate it anyway! So I can kind of relate....sort of.
I am completely lost on the DNA comment. You must explain. Did I miss something, was there a post I did't read or what?
Glad your girl is on her way home to you, maybe she will still smell like the ocean and you can get a whiff and live vicariously thru her. That is what I plan on doing with my kids when they get older. I am doing it now with my Hub. I ask him everyday what he ate for lunch and dinner and what fun things he saw. So then he takes pictures and emails them to me so I can feel more like I am part of the trip. Yah, it's not working so well. But at least he is trying!

The Crash Test Dummy said...

Springrose, I'll explain tonight. You didn't miss anything.

Martha, I saw pics of you. My daughter had a wonderful time. Thank you. And yes, she was very busy yesterday. So coooooool you got to be tour guides.

Iwa, I voted for Mariko yesterday. I'm going to post her link tonight.

Melanie, that is awesome!!! So glad I could help expand your culinary horizons.

TisforTonya said...

I teared up just a teensy tiny bit... you'll always be Crash from Hawaii to the blog world you know!!!

(and ewww... the title almost convinced me to stay away... but only almost)

Sandi said...

I bet your girl had the best time ever. It is always fun to go back because everyone is super excited to see you and give you free stuff. ha ha. But I'm sure she will be glad to be home and back in her present life too. There is something special about Laie--- no doubt. Plus I'm pretty sure she will be carrying a load of sand in her swimsuit that you can enjoy. I'm dying to go to that haunted lagoon, but we never get to plan a trip during this time, maybe someday. I 'm excited to go see the temple when we are there too.
I actually read your brothers post about his loogie (thats how I would spell it) Interesting stuff!
p.s. laundry sucks.

Sandi said...

So I finally broke down and read a few bio's from your fierce competitors. Shea D or "mr. 500 votes in an hour" is pretty cool. I can see why he is at the top. Little Miss CHO is a weirdie- how is she beating you? At number 3 is Ahntuan (is that pronounced Antwan?) put absolutely NO THOUGHT at all into his bio and doesn't deserve to be there at all.
I will try to round up some more votes for you- I need to see you on that front page!